On Louisiana Eats! NOLA food icon Poppy Tooker takes us into Louisiana's wide open fields, deep waters, bustling markets, and busy kitchens. Poppy's people are carrying on the traditions of Louisiana's wholly local but universally celebrated food, from farm to table, and sometimes barroom! Poppy roams the State to find the folks whose inspiration and innovation are taking the abundant wealth of Louisiana's food culture into the future. Let's eat!

What turns an ordinary woman into a legend? On this week's Louisiana Eats!, we attempt to answer that question by taking an in-depth look at four inspiring women who have conquered life's challenges and become legends in their own time.
We begin with a conversation with media darling Terry Flettrich Rohe, a pioneer of New Orleans radio and television. Those who grew up in the Crescent City in the 1950s may... Read More »

Whether it means indulging in a Full Irish breakfast, marching in the Irish Channel Parade, or simply enjoying a pint of Guinness at the local Irish pub, it's time to celebrate St. Patrick's Day! On this week's Louisiana Eats!, we explore Irish history and heritage in the Pelican State, hear stories from 21st century Irish immigrants, and take a tour of local pubs to hear how they observe the Feast... Read More »

This episode of Louisiana Eats! examines African-American culinary life and culture in slavery times and today. Historic New Orleans Collection curator Erin Greenwald gives us a private tour of Purchased Lives: New Orleans and the Domestic Slave Trade, 1808–1865, a 2015 exhibit that examined the domestic slave trade in America. Solomon Northup, the free man of color who wrote the memoir "Twelve Years A Slave" comes to life with some... Read More »

Since we began broadcasting Louisiana Eats! over five years ago, we've noticed a recurring theme when speaking with chefs, bartenders and restaurant owners about a certain aspect of the hospitality and service industry culture. From the front of the house to the back, across Louisiana and the entire country, there is a substance abuse problem in bars and restaurants.
On this week's episode, we speak with Will Arendell, a renowned substance... Read More »

From the height of its popularity in the 19th century to its modern revival, absinthe has a long and storied reputation. On this week's show, we learn all about the formerly illicit elixir and those whose ongoing fascination with the spirit has helped transform the discourse and regulations here in the United States.
Before false scientific claims and anti-absinthe hysteria lead to it to being banned for almost a century, Pernod... Read More »

There's romance in the air on Louisiana Eats!
In celebration of Valentine's Day, we take a trip to the very top of Louisiana, to Holly and Derek Schreiber's Sainte Terre, which hosts some of Louisiana's most romantic weddings. Situated in the small town of Benton, Sainte Terre combines Holly and Derek's culinary prowess and New York style with the devotion of a truly family-run business.
Back in the city, master sommelier Molly... Read More »

It's Carnival time on Louisiana Eats! On this week's show, we learn about Carnival traditions both public and private, and celebrations both large and small. We begin with a lively discussion about New Orleans' Mardi Gras traditions with Errol Laborde, author of Mardi Gras: Chronicles of the New Orleans Carnival.Then, we make our way over to Commander's Palace, where Lally Brennan explains the part her family's restaurant plays in fueling... Read More »

On the cusp of Carnival, the traditional meat celebration before the Lenten fasting begins, we're hosting our very own meat celebration.
We begin by joining Isaac Toups at Toups' Meatery for a viewing of Top Chef and a chat about the highs and lows of competing in the nationally televised cooking competition.
Then, we pack our overnight bags for a whole hog barbecue sleepover at The Southern Food and Beverage Museum, home... Read More »

On this week's show, we examine family food traditions from North Louisiana to the most southern tip of the boot!First, Chef Nick Lama invites us into the kitchen at Avo, an intimate fine-dining restaurant near Audubon Park in Uptown New Orleans. A third-generation Sicilian and native New Orleanian, Nick most recently worked as Chef de Cuisine at Gautreau's, where he won Gambit's Emerging Chef Challenge. Nick gives us a Northern... Read More »

Knowing the human history behind any dish just makes it taste better. On this week's episode of Louisiana Eats!, we hit the books with several food historians to hear tales of our culinary past.
First, we speak with Dr. David Shields of the University of South Carolina, who shares his years of research on American culinarians. His book, Culinarians: American Chefs, Caterers & Restaurateurs, due to be published this year, is the first ever biographical... Read More »

On this week's show, we catch up with some of the trailblazers and award winners of the Louisiana food scene and beyond.
If you have been tuning into the new season of Top Chef on Bravo TV, you might have recognized a familiar face in Louisiana-born Chef Isaac Toups of Toups Meatery. Five episodes into Top Chef's 13th season, Isaac is holding his own. We'll get the behind-the-scenes scoop from Isaac,... Read More »

On this week's show, we voyage to the Land of the Midnight Sun and explore Nordic culinary traditions.
To begin our journey, we visit with Chef Magnus Nilsson, the genius behind Fäviken, a world renowned restaurant in a far-flung farming region of Sweden. Magnus has taken on the whole of Scandinavia and beyond in his newly-released Nordic Cookbook, an enormous tome that illustrates the way Nordic food traditions emerged from the... Read More »